A group of eight architecture graduate students from the University of Hawai'i-Manoa will have a chance to see their building designs go from concept to completion, thanks to a unique partnership with Fiji.

Unlike most college course work, which typically involves hypothetical projects, each students' design will be built with the help of a former Cabinet minister of the island nation.

From a community center to a church, a school to a library, each student has been assigned a specific building to design.

With assistance from a former minister of housing, Adi Asenaca Caucau, the students' designs will be built within the next two years and will benefit the 2,000 people of the small island of Batiki.

"This is the most economically depressed island (in Fiji)," said Caucau, who fled to Hawai'i following a military takeover of his nation last year.

"It's going to help in so many ways. The Batiki people won't have to continually erect these temporary sheds for the community," she said.

Architect Marga Jann, instructor at UH-Manoa's School of Architecture, said the donation of the students' work not only will help keep costs down for the Batiki building projects, it will also provide students with real-world experience.

"Typically, students are working on hypothetical projects with hypothetical clients," Jann said.

The design process for these architecture students has already begun.

"What I typically do before I start a design is brush up on the history and culture," said graduate student Ryan Yee, who was assigned to design a church for the Batiki community.

But the bulk of the inspiration for his design will come from the visit to the island, he said.

"You really can't design for a place without experiencing it. That's where a lot of the insight will come from," he said.

However, the cost to visit Fiji is about $2,000 per student, so the group has been attempting to raise money and seek out grants to make the trip, said Jann.

Architecture student Pouy Phanphengdy, who will design a council meeting house, stressed the importance of having an understanding of the place.

For instance, Phanphengdy said, he once had an assignment to design a church.

However, having grown up in Laos, he had little idea about what a Christian church should look like. So he visited a few local churches.

"If I didn't do that, my design would've looked like a Buddhist temple," he said.

The students are expected to make their visit in late November and will see the projects through to completion, which could take up to two years, Jann said.

Meanwhile, Caucau said, the three villages on Batiki have already begun raising money to pay for the eight building projects, which are expected to cost about $600,000.

Much of the money will come from the Nakorolevu Development Project Fund, a private fundraising effort on the island that was started to help build a church and a pastor's house.

Caucau also is working from Hawai'i to obtain grants from international organizations.

Reach Loren Moreno at lmoreno@honoluluadvertiser.com.